By Gail Ghere and Jennifer York-Barr

Institute on Community Integration (UCEDD) & Department of Educational
Policy and Administration, University of Minnesota

Printed July, 2003

This document was supported in part by Grant #832M980176, A Systems Approach
to Paraprofessional Development and Support in Inclusive Schools, awarded to
the Institute on Community Integration (UCEDD) at the University of Minnesota
from the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs
(OSEP). This document does not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Department
of Education, the Institute on Community Integration or the University of Minnesota,
and no official endorsement should be inferred.

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The Work of Paraprofessionals in Inclusive Education Programs
Approaches to Allocating Paraprofessional Support
Specific Paraprofessional Roles and Responsibilities Based on Individual Student
Needs

The Work of Special Educators in Supporting Paraprofessionals
The Role of the Special Education Teacher
The Role of the Special Education Building Coordinator
Overlap in the Responsibilities of Special Education Teachers and Paraprofessionals

Collaboration That Supports Special Educators in Directing Work of Paraprofessionals
Collaboration with General Education Teachers
Collaboration Among the Special Education Teachers
Active Administrative Support

Acknowledgments

We wish to thank each of the 53 teachers, administrators, and paraprofessionals
in the three school districts who generously shared their time and expertise
for this study. Clearly, these dedicated educators have demonstrated strong
commitments to creating schools in which students with disabilities are included,
valued, and supported to learn well. We were privileged to be listeners and
learners as they shared so openly their experiences and insights regarding successful
inclusive practices. Because of these individuals, many other educators, students,
and parents will have the opportunity to learn from the findings of study and
make local applications to improve the quality of their respective educational
programs. We are truly grateful.

We also wish to thank the Publications Office at the Institute on Community
Integration, University of Minnesota for their unsurpassed talents in designing
a “user-friendly” monograph easily accessible by practitioners,
policy makers, and researchers.

Abstract

It was not until the 1997 reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act (IDEA) that federal special education legislation referred to
“paraprofessionals.” This was despite the paraprofessional workforce
exploding from 10,000 in 1965 to over 500,000 full-time equivalent employees
by 1996 (Pickett, 1986, 1996). IDEA focused national attention on paraprofessionals
who support students with disabilities in public schools. Concurrently, the
literature on paraprofessional roles and responsibilities, direction, and development
has grown steadily. Although more research is needed in all of these areas,
little continues to be known about paraprofessional employment processes (Giangreco,
Edelman, Broer, & Doyle, 2001). Policies and practices at each level of
the school district (i.e., team, school, district) affect paraprofessional employment,
direction, and development. There is a significant gap in our knowledge about
how districts are looking at these issues across the levels of district and
the degree of communication and coordination that exists between the levels
of a district. These issues are particularly important for inclusive special
education programs because the programs tend to be highly decentralized and
paraprofessionals often do not work in close proximity to the special education
teachers most of the school day.

The purpose of this study was to describe and understand the systems that districts
use to employ, develop, and direct their special education paraprofessionals
to work effectively in inclusive special education programs. A multi-site case
study of three school districts was conducted. District level special education
personnel in each district identified one elementary special education teacher
and one secondary special education teacher whom they believed were effectively
including students with disabilities in general education classes and who directed
the work of at least two paraprofessionals. Other key informants (e.g., special
education directors, special education supervisors, principals, paraprofessionals)
were drawn from the site and district levels in the three school districts.
A total of 53 individuals from across the three districts participated in the
study. Data collection included semi-structured interviews and structured group
interviews. The findings clustered around key areas:

The work of paraprofessionals in inclusive education programs.

The work of special educators in supporting paraprofessionals.

Developing the knowledge and skills of paraprofessionals.

Collaboration that supports special educators in directing the work of
paraprofessionals.